European Union starts a €2 handling fee on online orders shipped from outside the bloc

1 November 2026

From 1 November the European Union charges a €2 handling fee on goods that businesses outside the bloc sell and ship to private buyers in it. Estonia's Tax and Customs Board says the fee is due for each item line in the customs declaration; trade between businesses and gifts between private people are left out. It comes on top of the €3 customs duty that has applied since July to small parcels worth less than €150, which until then entered free of duty. The fee pays for customs checks. Platforms, sellers or carriers pay it, and the 27 member states collect it; 75% goes to the EU budget and 25% stays with member states. The European Commission says small-parcel imports fell 60% between July and September, but about 5 million parcels still arrive every day. In 2024, 91% of these shipments came from China.